


till it smacks you in the heart

by sharlatan



Category: Check Please! (Webcomic)
Genre: Jack thinks its one sided, M/M, Pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-13
Updated: 2016-09-13
Packaged: 2018-08-14 19:29:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 862
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8026111
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sharlatan/pseuds/sharlatan
Summary: Jack Zimmermann is not in love with Eric Bittle.





	till it smacks you in the heart

 

 

Jack Zimmermann is not in love with Eric Bittle. He is not in love with Eric Bittle because Bitty is in a very nice relationship with an unnamed classmate and likes to talk about how “[Redacted] makes the best jokes and oh you won’t believe how he failed at following a basic cookie recipe, Jack! You were better than him last year when we took that seminar together. That boy,” Bitty shakes his head fondly.

Jack is not in love with Eric Bittle when Bitty chats to him about his date with the unnamed classmate (Jack refuses to think about his name), how you would not believe this boy and his ideas about baking soda! 

“You know he told me once he thought there was no difference between baking powder and baking soda?”

“Really? What’s the difference?”

“Jack Laurent Zimmermann! This is not the sort of behavior I accept from my former Hausmate!” 

Jack is not in love with Eric Bittle when Bitty visits him in his Providence apartment, bringing cookies and pies and his special rolling pin. 

“Thanks so much for letting me stay over while the Haus is being fumigated! Oh, at least the rest of them are back home or on vacation so we don’t all invade your home.”

“Don’t worry, it’s nothing. Besides, it means I get free pie again, eh?”

“Mr. Zimmermann, think about your diet!” Bitty exclaims as he unpacks the freshly baked cookies in the kitchen. “But really, thanks. [Redacted] offered to let me stay at his place since he lives near but, oh, I didn’t know about that. I know we’ve been dating for a few months but it seems like such a big step! Or well, he’s moving so fast! I know he’s a senior so he’s has to be thinking about what happens when he graduates, but he was talking about houses and children the other day.”

“You sound like a husband getting cold feet on the day of his wedding,” Jack teased him. He made an internal note that Bitty likes to take things slow, and not to mention houses and children when they- when they nothing, because Jack is not in love with Eric Bittle and they are not going to date. 

“Shush, Jack. And okay, maybe I’m the one who loves event planning and who dreams about the perfect wedding but it's overwhelming thinking about [Redacted] graduating. And then he’s talking about how living together in Boston sounds like a good idea and how he’s always liked the idea of having two kids instead of just one. And I don’t think I’m in the wrong for thinking that maybe he really is thinking too far ahead? I mean we've only just met this semester.” Bitty rambled with a slight frown. 

“Has he asked you how you felt about this?” Jack doesn’t say that yes, [Redacted] is moving too fast or that maybe Bitty’s just the one who doesn’t feel things as strongly, or that Bitty can definitely do better. 

“He has and well, I just. I told him that Boston seemed nice, I’m definitely not moving back down to Georgia. Jack, you didn’t tell me you have a Kitchenaid!” 

It was a clear deflection, but Jack liked the way Bitty’s eyes shone when he saw the butter yellow Kitchenaid that he purchased the day earlier. 

Jack is not in love with Eric Bittle, even when Bitty starts voicing more and more complaints about his boyfriend. He doesn’t say much about it, knowing that Bitty just needs a sounding board in order to figure out things by himself. His heart doesn’t float when Bitty tells him that he’s going to have a talk with [Redacted] about their relationship. 

He doesn’t internally heave a sigh of relief when Bitty tells him that they broke up. He does feel extremely guilty for how happy he is that Bitty is finally single and he tells himself that it’s because Bitty is a little sad, and he doesn’t like it when Bittle is sad.

Jack Zimmermann is at 110% when he’s trying to convince himself that he’s not in love with Eric Bittle. 

Jack Zimmermann fails at being 110% at this when Bitty’s telling him through Skype about his new professor and Jack interrupts and says,

“Bittle. Bitty. Bitty listen.” 

“Jack? Is this about Professor Wickham because-”

“I love you. Do you, we can meet at Annie’s tomorrow and talk…” He trails off because Bitty is scrunching up his cute nose and he looks like he’s blinking away tears and Jack doesn’t know what he did wrong and he wishes that he was there so he can wipe away that expression from Bitty’s face. 

“Jack, of course we can meet up tomorrow. Oh, I can’t believe this! Jack, when did- why- my answer is yes! Oh, you didn’t even ask me a question, forget my silly old yes.”

“I definitely am asking you out, but I want to talk about this face to face.” Jack smiles, because Bitty had said yes, because Bitty is agreeing, because Bitty likes him back. 

Jack Zimmermann is in love with Eric Bittle, and Eric Bittle loves him back. 


End file.
